know?’ mimicked Leoni. ‘OK, spoilt brat, I’ll tell you. Dad used to get into bed wi—’ THWACK! Stunned, she realised that Mom had just slapped her face – hard – and now stood over her, panting and flushed. Leoni’s right ear was hot and ringing where the blow had struck. At once her anger brimmed over and she bellowed: ‘You KNEW about it, Mom. You even ALLOWED it.’ She saw that this accusation had hit the mark. Mom’s face fell and, just for an instant, before she got herself under control, she had a hunted, almost frightened look in her eyes.
Leoni pressed home her advantage: ‘You BITCH. You DID know about it. You KNEW!’ She lunged forward and tried to claw her mother’s face but her father got between them, shouting: ‘This is madness, Leoni. Stop it! Stop making things up.’
Leoni wasn’t about to stop anything: ‘Oh yeah?’ she shrieked. ‘If I’m making things up then how come I know about JACK?’
The startled expression on both her parents’ faces told her once again she’d scored some sort of point. That was when the good-looking doctor who’d saved her life in the emergency room walked in.
Dad and Mom jumped back and the doctor strode across the floor to stand at the foot of the bed. ‘What’s going on here?’ he demanded.
Mom gave him her constipated-gorilla look: ‘Who’s asking?’
‘Dr Bannerman. I attended Leoni in ER.’
‘Well, Dr Bannerman, we’re Mr and Mrs Watts, Leoni’s parents, and we’re having a private family discussion that’s none of your business. OK?’
‘No, Mrs Watts. It’s not OK. I heard the shouting halfway down the corridor, and I also think I heard somebody getting hit.’ He paused, seemed to reconsider something he was about to say, and added: ‘But let’s not go there right now. Your daughter is my patient. My responsibility is to ensure she makes a proper recovery and she isn’t going to do that if she has to deal with this kind of … “discussion”. Please just leave at once and let her get some sleep …’
‘You’re telling us to leave?’ screeched Mom. ‘You don’t have the right. We’re her parents. We’re paying her bills here.’
‘As it happens,’ said Dr Bannerman, ‘I do have the right, and I don’t care who you are or what you’re paying. The patient comes first and this patient needs peace and quiet.’
Mom turned to Dad: ‘Herman! Didn’t we give a big capital gift to this hospital last year?’
‘You bet we did. Five million dollars for the building programme.’
‘There!’ yelled Mom. ‘And it’s not the first time. Check it out, doctor! How do you think Chancellor Edelman will feel if we withdraw future support because of your behaviour? WE’RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE.’
‘I’ve had enough,’ said Bannerman. ‘I’m calling security.’
Mom glared at him as he moved to the bedside to pick up the telephone. He had already started dialling when Dad capitulated. He marched over to the sofa and grabbed his son’s hand: ‘Come on, Adam, time to go home. Come on, Madeleine. Let’s get out of here.’
For a moment Mom was speechless. She had been defeated! Something she could not abide. As the three of them headed in disarray towards the door she looked over her shoulder and flashed the doctor herpoisonous-lizard look: ‘There’s going to be consequences’ she said. ‘You’ll be hearing from our attorney.’
In the last second she turned her eyes on Leoni and beamed rays of hatred at her. Then they were out of the room and marching down the hallway under a barrage of shrill questions from Adam.
Chapter Nine
‘MOVE, YOU IDIOTS!’ Ria screamed, startling the Uglies out of their inertia and sending them running in all directions as the second spear came whistling in. It shot past her and buried itself in the face of an old hunched female in the seventh rank, dropping her in a heap.
Still nobody seemed to know what to do. Ria sought around, found that Brindle had stuck close
Leoni pressed home her advantage: ‘You BITCH. You DID know about it. You KNEW!’ She lunged forward and tried to claw her mother’s face but her father got between them, shouting: ‘This is madness, Leoni. Stop it! Stop making things up.’
Leoni wasn’t about to stop anything: ‘Oh yeah?’ she shrieked. ‘If I’m making things up then how come I know about JACK?’
The startled expression on both her parents’ faces told her once again she’d scored some sort of point. That was when the good-looking doctor who’d saved her life in the emergency room walked in.
Dad and Mom jumped back and the doctor strode across the floor to stand at the foot of the bed. ‘What’s going on here?’ he demanded.
Mom gave him her constipated-gorilla look: ‘Who’s asking?’
‘Dr Bannerman. I attended Leoni in ER.’
‘Well, Dr Bannerman, we’re Mr and Mrs Watts, Leoni’s parents, and we’re having a private family discussion that’s none of your business. OK?’
‘No, Mrs Watts. It’s not OK. I heard the shouting halfway down the corridor, and I also think I heard somebody getting hit.’ He paused, seemed to reconsider something he was about to say, and added: ‘But let’s not go there right now. Your daughter is my patient. My responsibility is to ensure she makes a proper recovery and she isn’t going to do that if she has to deal with this kind of … “discussion”. Please just leave at once and let her get some sleep …’
‘You’re telling us to leave?’ screeched Mom. ‘You don’t have the right. We’re her parents. We’re paying her bills here.’
‘As it happens,’ said Dr Bannerman, ‘I do have the right, and I don’t care who you are or what you’re paying. The patient comes first and this patient needs peace and quiet.’
Mom turned to Dad: ‘Herman! Didn’t we give a big capital gift to this hospital last year?’
‘You bet we did. Five million dollars for the building programme.’
‘There!’ yelled Mom. ‘And it’s not the first time. Check it out, doctor! How do you think Chancellor Edelman will feel if we withdraw future support because of your behaviour? WE’RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE.’
‘I’ve had enough,’ said Bannerman. ‘I’m calling security.’
Mom glared at him as he moved to the bedside to pick up the telephone. He had already started dialling when Dad capitulated. He marched over to the sofa and grabbed his son’s hand: ‘Come on, Adam, time to go home. Come on, Madeleine. Let’s get out of here.’
For a moment Mom was speechless. She had been defeated! Something she could not abide. As the three of them headed in disarray towards the door she looked over her shoulder and flashed the doctor herpoisonous-lizard look: ‘There’s going to be consequences’ she said. ‘You’ll be hearing from our attorney.’
In the last second she turned her eyes on Leoni and beamed rays of hatred at her. Then they were out of the room and marching down the hallway under a barrage of shrill questions from Adam.
Chapter Nine
‘MOVE, YOU IDIOTS!’ Ria screamed, startling the Uglies out of their inertia and sending them running in all directions as the second spear came whistling in. It shot past her and buried itself in the face of an old hunched female in the seventh rank, dropping her in a heap.
Still nobody seemed to know what to do. Ria sought around, found that Brindle had stuck close
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